5 months old waking every hour at night.?

Question

Hi everyone,
I have a wonderful baby boy who is just a really great baby- only cries when he needs something, smiles often, ect... Anyways, he was sleeping 9 + hours a night on only breastmilk at 3 months, then he got an ear infection. During this time, he woke every hour and I nursed or rocked him to comfort him. When he was better 10 days later, he continued the waking every few hours. I understood, since when he was sick I rushed right in. He is still waking up every few hours. He sleeps from 9-1 (this is great!) then wakes every 1/2 hour to hour until the morning. He cries with his eyes closed, until he has cried for a few minutes with no one coming in, then he opens them & cries loudly. I've never let him cry for more than about 3 minutes though. :( I have tried a pacifier, ect.. but he just wants to nurse to go to sleep. What do I do? This can't be healthy for him to not sleep. (or me) Thanks! Oh- I tried rice cereal- but he got an upset belly! Should I try again

Answer 1

You may want to try and consider that he could be teething......

Answer 2

At 5 months, he's probably old enough for the rice cereal and/or some oatmeal so that might help a little, but earlier in the evening, not when he wakes at night.
He could also be teething or have another ear infection, so get him checked out (they do tend to recur).
If none of that works, you probably need to wait a bit longer before going in. Take a look at the book in the linked sources below. We "Ferberized" our oldest, waiting a bit longer each time to go in, tho we were never hard core enough to wait longer than about 15 minutes. He was sleeping thru in about 3 nights, and while it was hard on us listening to him, he showed no signs of emotional trauma immediately after or much later. He is now 17 and taking his driving test in the next hour! Good luck.

Answer 3

First congrats on Breastfeeding!

Second I"m afraid you've gotten some (not all) horrible, outdated, even dangerous advice here on letting your child cry at such a young age. The suggestions regarding teething and growth spurts should really be listened to. A 5 month old is still terribly young to have a consistent sleep pattern It was just a few months ago that he was still in your belly, it is scary to me that people have such high expectations so fast. Honestly he'll change how he sleeps a dozen times before he starts talking. That's totally normal. It absolutely can be teething and painful growth spurts (at 6 months I know they have one) .. in which case it would be nothing short of neglect to not attend to his needs. They need to nurse around the clock during those growth spurts. That is what makes his brain and body grow. You say he only cries when he needs you, why would the middle of the night be any different? It sounds like you've established such a wonderful bond, I would hate to see you teach him to lose trust in you by not listening to his cries. Then you'll be wondering why he won't listen to you when he is 14.

Have you thought about bringing him to bed with you, so you can get through this time? You wouldn't have to get up and you both might sleep better? If you worry about rolling over on him, do you worry about rolling out of bed? You know the side is there right? You'll know he is there.

I agree with the advice on not trying cereal again till 9 months. The latest advice is to wait until AT LEAST 6 months. If he's had a bad reaction it's better to wait even longer (allergies, intestine's not fully formed yet)

It sounds like you are a wonderful mother, albeit tired of course.. but you'll get through this. Just trust your instincts. This stage will be over in the blink of an eye.

Answer 4

Cereal in the middle of the night won't be a good idea. This gives the baby the idea it is time to wake up. Sounds like you just have a little one used to being wiht mom since he was sick. I would say that you should try cutting back on the feedings at night. Only some though as he is still little. Maybe just offer to cuddle with him instead of nursing. If you are still concerned you should contact your local lactation consultant and she can give you some ideas too . Good luck

Answer 5

You may want to consider that some babies are more sensitive to teething than others. He's about 5 months, he could be starting to teethe. Also, don't be afraid to let him cry for more than 3 minutes. It is natural for him to test you, if he finds out that he can make you do what he wants, he will make a habit of it. They are learning the concept of cause and effect at this age. You should try for at least 10 to 15 minutes of him crying before you go in there to comfort him, if you feel compelled to do so.
Also, some babies do not want pacifiers. My first son used a paci, my other son does not.

Answer 6

Have you tried malicon drops? it sounds like a gas problem? also try a bottle of room temp water, if hes just thirsty this will help, make sure you burp him so that he alleviates any built up gas. Does anyone smoke around him? This causes ear infections and irritability. Make sure that he's not teething, and that hes good and tired before he goes to bed. This is going to be tough on you but don't let him fall asleep in your arms, he needs to go to bed with his eyes open so that he can soothe himself to sleep. BE PERSISTENT! When he cries wait 5 min. the next time he cries wait 6 min then 7 min. and so on and so forth. Over time he will get back on track! Hopefully this helps! It did for me!!!

Answer 7

Yes you can try rice cereal again or even try oatmeal or barely(they are other single grain cereals) Also he could be teething. My daughter from 6wks until 4 months slept 8hrs at night without waking than all of a sudden she started waking up every hour or two and she is 5 months now and still doing it. So I know what you are going through. Good Luck!

Answer 8

well, at just 5 months your baby may still need some extra nighttime feedings, but certainly not every half hour. try rocking him without nursing, maybe only nurse at 1 and 4 or so, and then again around7. If he won't go to sleep without nursing, it may be that he is having a growth spurt and really needs the extra milk.

Answer 9

5 Months is old enough to sleep through the night. he may also be having a growth spurt where they like to feed more often. Try letting him cry it out a couple times. i promise no harm will come to you or your baby. I know how hard it is to hear them scream for their mommy. But you have to break him of the habit. He doesn't understand why you can't constantly come to his aid...but he will soon realize it is not going to do any good and he'll soon sleep through it. You Should definitely read, :Healthy sleep habits, happy Baby" it has helped me so much on naps and when to put them to bed and so forth. I highly reccommend it.

Answer 10

I would try the rice cereal again... maybe put it in the bottle with his milk.

What happened is while he was sick he got used to getting up like that and adapted that as his routine...well now that he isn't sick he still thinks that is his routine...

It takes time to get a routine back on track...you have to come up with a schedule and stick too it. If he cries during the night give him water...that is what my dr told me to do...he is to big to be gettin gup at night for a feeding. If he wants to cry it out let him...get a music player and put it on...as long as he is safe it is ok for him to cry.

Answer 11

Come in while he's still sleeping and just let him know you're there, he got used to being carried around at night while he was sick, and you need to get him back on schedule. once he understands that you're there he'll sleep better, but for a while you'll still miss sleep.
opening his eyes and crying louder shows he thinks he's alone. Come in before he opens his eyes, stroke his hair , talk to him softly, and he'll know he's not alone and settle back to sleep. Within a couple of weeks he should go back to sleeping all night.